UCLA quarterback Kevin Prince is knocked out of bounds by Houston defensive back D.J. Hayden. Prince suffered a concussion on the play and had to leave the game. BOB LEVEY, GETTY IMAGES

HOUSTON – Quarterback Kevin Prince doesn’t remember the hit he took in the second quarter from Cougars cornerback D.J. Hayden that flipped him upside down and forced him to land on his head.

Prince suffered a mild concussion and is scheduled to be examined again Sunday.

“It will be a day-by-day process,” Prince said. “I blacked out. I just remember I flipped and the next thing I remember I’m on the bench. I don’t know where I landed.”

Prince, who gained four yards on what was his second consecutive run, said he was trying to get out of bounds before Hayden took his legs out. The redshirt junior lay motionless for a few minutes as trainers tended to him on the sideline. After getting up, he briefly sat on the bench before making his way to the locker room.

“I wasn’t trying to take a hit there,” Prince said. “I was trying to get out of bounds. He got to my legs before I could get there. I saw him. It all happened so fast. My thought was to get out of bounds.

Prince completed 3 of 3 passes for 58 yards, leading UCLA to one touchdown before exiting in his fourth series.

Prince’s injury history is well-documented, but he had made it through fall practice as healthy as he’s been throughout his college career. He missed two games as a redshirt freshman with a broken jaw. He suffered a concussion later that season and missed half a game.

Prince played through back and shoulder issues early last season, only to injure his knee in late September. He missed the final six games of the season after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery.

“It’s very frustrating,” Prince said. “Going through camp, being able to participate the whole time, then to play one quarter and be done with it that quickly.”

DISAPPOINTING DEBUT

No one seemed to take UCLA’s loss harder than Kip Smith. After missing a field goal that would have cut the Bruins’ deficit to seven points late in the fourth quarter, Smith rested on the sideline on one knee, his head buried in his hands.

All fall the redshirt freshman has been inconsistent, Neuheisel only naming him the starting placekicker two days before the game.

It was obvious why. Smith looked shaky in making his first three extra-point attempts. When UCLA lined up for a 32-yard field goal in the fourth quarter trailing by 10, Smith said he was trying to stay smooth. Instead, he did what he’s done at Spaulding Field more times than he’d like to remember. He missed wide right.

“I hit it good,” said Smith afterward, fighting back tears.

Smith’s PAT attempt was blocked after the Bruins scored a touchdown on their next drive.

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